Motion, Emotion, and Love

The Nature of Artistic Performance

What is the secret language between a performing artist and an audience? How does a performing artist’s product differ from the product of nonperformance art? How is a performer’s artwork shaped, changed, and elevated by captivated observers? Motion, Emotion, and Love is a book that will transform the experience of performers and audiences alike, by infusing performance art with a new vocabulary. For performers, the book is a practical guide to building intentional and inspirational practice time, bringing true artistry to every element of a performance, and developing strong personal communication with the audience. For audiences, the book explains the vital role of the audience in a performance, revealing to them a new level of involvement and collaboration with the performer and with other members of the audience.

Performers, whether musicians, actors, or dancers, communicate emotion by means of bodily movement. But it is love that unites performers with the audience and with each other. Motion, Emotion and Love helps performing artists return to the soul of their craft, and imbues their physical mastery with human vulnerability.

Musician, teacher, and author Thomas Mark’s profound, yet clear and practical exploration is eye-opening in its connections, a compelling blueprint for deeper understanding and appreciation of artistic performance.

Thomas Carson Mark studied piano in New York with David Bar-Illan and Jeannette Haien, and philosophy at Columbia University, where he earned his PhD. He taught philosophy for several years at various colleges and universities, then returned to the piano. From 1992 to 2001 he organized and performed in the Newport Coffee Concerts, a chamber music series in Newport, Oregon. He is the author of What Every Pianist Needs to Know about the Body, some philosophical articles on performance, and a book and several papers on the philosophy of Spinoza. Thomas Mark writes and teaches in Portland, Oregon.